Elven Lore
The Elves refer to themselves as the Tel´Quessir, which roughly translates to "the People". Non-elves are referred to as N´Tel`Quess, which is a less than polite term translating to "not-People". The Ar-Tel´Quessir (Gold or Sun Elves) Gold Elves believe themselves to be the chosen defenders of elven culture and tradition, selected specifically for the task by Corellon Larethian himself. They take this role very seriously, throwing themselves into their chosen tasks with verve and enthusiasm. Gold Elf artisans are methodical, careful individuals who will labor for years on relatively simple items such as brooches or rings. Armorers craft each weapon or piece of armor with painstaking precision. Warriors train endlessly with single-minded devotion. Clerics study the words of the gods and pray constantly for guidance. The Gold Elves are easily the most arrogant of the subraces, because of an inbred belief that they are the chosen elven defenders. There is also an undercurrent of belief (rarely spoken aloud) that they are the only real Elves, and that the other subraces have somehow turned away from true elven society. This prejudice is often well hidden, but it is there nonetheless. As the long-lived Elves follow many different paths during their lifespan, the average Gold Elf will be a multi-talented individual, having given the full measure of devotion to each one of his or her chosen paths. This willful devotion takes time, and Gold Elves will not have as many different skills or professions as their Silver Elf cousins. This perhaps is the most significant difference between humans and Gold Elves. More than any of the other Tel'Quessir subraces, the Gold Elves. longevity has changed their outlook and their very means of thinking. Patience and thoughtfulness dominate every aspect of the Gold Elves' outlook. Actions are rarely taken without considerable thought, discussion, and consideration, and they never hurry. The only exception to this is in combat, when quick action is required. The rest of the time, the Ar-Tel'Quessir are slow and methodical, patient and endlessly thoughtful, in stark contrast to relatively quick-acting, short-lived humans. The Teu-Tel´Quessir (Silver or Moon Elves) While they share the Gold Elves' passion for the defense of their homeland, their race and their queen, the Silver Elves. personal philosophies are more impulsive and display a decidedly live-for-the-moment outlook. They dislike remaining in one place for very long, and enjoy travel. This alone may account for their adventurous nature, but there is a deeper and more important aspect to it as well, for the Silver Elves strongly believe that an individual must choose his or her own path through life. The Silver Elves desire to see and do everything possible during their span on this plane. Silver Elves' love of travel, their tendency toward multiple talents and skills, and the fact that many chose not to follow the Retreat, but to remain in Faerûn as adventurers, are all reflections of the Teu-Tel'Quessir's inquisitive and unbound nature. A Silver Elf craves experience; experience entails going many places, doing many things, and meeting many people. Silver Elves have fewer qualms about associating with N´Tel´Quessir than the Gold or Green Elves, and usually possess the skills to relate to many different peoples and cultures. The Sy-Tel´Quessir (Green, Forest, Savage, or Wild Elves) Green Elves throughout Faerûn show similar attitudes. The Sy-Tel'Quessir have endured many outrages at the hands of humans and other non-elves. Their forests have been felled or burned, their homes and campsites sacked their people killed or enslaved. Coupled with a natural isolationist tendency, this terrible history makes the Green Elves intensely suspicious of outsiders, especially humans. Several bands of Green Elves remained on Faerûn, preferring to defend their traditional forest homelands rather than retreat to Evermeet. Even those Sy-Tel'Quessir who followed the Retreat remain distant and separate from their Gold and Silver relatives, joining them only at festivals, or for the mutual defense of the realm. In addition to being insular and reclusive, the Green Elves are the most warlike and violent of the subraces. They enjoy raiding each other and engaging in large-scale mock battles. Their tactics for dealing with intruders vary from tribe to tribe. Some will simply hide and allow trespassers to go by unknowing, while others will attack and capture the interlopers. Though they dislike outsiders, Green Elves rarely kill captives, preferring instead to magically alter their memories and carry them far away, to be released with stern warnings never to return. Green Elves excel in battle. They are masters of hit-and-run tactics, ambush, and sniping, and have destroyed more than one enemy force that attempted to enter their forest domains. In close combat, Green Elves are equally dangerous, using complex acrobatic maneuvers and displays of their weapon skill to overawe opponents, and slaying both quickly and efficiently. Many primitive elements persist in Green Elf society. Their priests function as human druids do. They also commune constantly with a pantheon of naturespirits, each representing an archetypal member of an animal species or natural phenomenon. Their warriors often go into fits of battle-madness, and some of their more eccentric druidic priests are said to be capable of changing into animal form at will. Although they are grim and hostile around outsiders, within the tribe Green Elves are pleasant and outgoing in a manner reminiscent of the Gold Elves. Their feasts are events of great joy, with singing, dancing, and all manner of merry-making. Hunts are tribal affairs in which all Elves, including the very young and old, have a part. They take great care to assist those who need it during the hunt, so all will feel a part of their successes. Religious ceremonies involve exuberant songs and hearty prayers to the gods. On important festival days such as Springrite and Fallrite, Green Elves invite neighboring Silver or Gold Elves and sylvan creatures to participate. Such celebrations can last for days and involve great revelry and uninhibited behavior. Green Elf society varies considerably, with many different customs practiced. In general, Green Elf bands are tribal groupings, traveling through the forests and making camp in a traditional nomadic fashion. Some tribes are sedentary, living in permanent villages, with wood or thatch huts surrounding a common area in the center. Sexes are often segregated in Green Elf villages, with separate men's and women's lodges for special ceremonies and invocations. Some tribes are exclusively matriarchal, others are patriarchal, and still others call for shared responsibility for rulership between the sexes. The Or-Tel´Quessir (Copper, Sylvan or Wood Elves) The Wood Elves are among the most numerous of Faerûn elven people, a young and confident folk who hold the old Elven forest homelands in strength. Heirs to the second generation of Elven nations, the Wood Elves see their realms as the natural successors to lands such as Earlann or Cormanthyr. Where the old empires expanded with strengths and pride, the realms of the Wood Elves hope to grow with compassion and humility. The Wood Elves do not view their homelands as a land apart from Faerûn; they understand better than their kindred that for better or worse, their fates are bound up with the fates of the humans, dwarves and halflings around them. The Wood Elves are the most recent addition to the various Elven subraces of Faerûn, although the history of their civilization still exceeds that of many other races of Toril. They also have the unusual distinction (often thought as an honor by copper Elves) of being the only subrace of Elves to be actual natives of Faerûn. The first copper Elves did not appear at once; their race coalesced slowly over the course of several centuries after the last Crown War, belying several older Elven kindred. Wood Elves are calm, serene and difficult to surprise. Their patience is legendary. They are at one with the world of nature, and are not comfortable in areas of heavy civilization. They have lost the urge to build and replace nature with walls and palaces; even the cities build by their Elven kin seem to be foolish to the wood Elves. They have come to believe that buildings of stone are transitory in nature, and that in time, the forest returns to overgrow the greatest of cities. Other races interpret this attitude as fatalistic or condescending, and as a result wood Elves find it hard to understand anyone who is not a wood Elf. The Ruar-Tel´Quessir (Mithril or Star Elves) The green depths of the Yuirwood hide an ancient secret long forgotten by fold beyond Aglarond's borders, and not widely known even within – the star Elves, an Elven subrace that retreated and removed themelves from Faerûn to an extraplanar refuge created by powerful Elven high magic, known as Sildeyuir. Sometimes referred to in ancient texts as Mithril Elves, the Star Elves concealed the existence of their hidden kingdom for almost two thousand years, leaving behind nothing but mysterious ruins and old, strong magic in the stone circles of the Yuirwood which also serve as portals to their twilight realm. While the Star Elves have kept themselves apart from the rest of Faerûn for many centuries, their isolation is coming to an end. Besieged by an insidious peril from beyond the circles of the world, they face the possibility of being driven from Sildeyuir back to their ancient abode in the Yuirwood. Star Elves are cautious and aloof, keeping and emotional distance from events. They can be judgemental, although they take their time to consider many factors before passing udgement on a creature or action. Once won, a Star Elf's friendship (and enmity) is deep and long lasting. Star Elves love beauty in any form and have a knack for perceiving inner beauty rather than outward appearance and actions. Among their own kind, Star Elves delight in song, dance, and works of magic, but away from their homeland they are slow to bestow the gift of their voice or artistry. Most Star Elves have removed themselves from the everyday life of Faerûn and therefore have little understanding of humans, dwarves, and other races. They think of humans as aggressive expansionists who readily take up blade and spell to get what they want, and they regard humans with caution. They get along well with other Elves, especially Sun and Wood Elves, but fear trouble from the Moon Elves' unguarded generosity and engagement of human realms. Painted Elves Painted Elves, who are normally not native to the Forgotten Realms, are treated as a sub race of the Wild Elves for the purpose of our Server lore. The Alu-Tel´Quessir (Sea, Water, or Aquatic Elves) (not playable as characters on War for the Cormanthor) As individuals, the Sea Elves seem distant and only barely comprehensible. They are now creatures of the oceans, unaffected by the concerns of land dwellers. A Sea Elf speaks in a deep voice, in a language distantly related to and quite distinct from that of land Elves. Sensitive to the minutest changes in the water and the environment around them, the Sea Elves feel a closer harmony with their world than even the nature-loving Green Elves. When one speaks with Sea Elves, it is clear that they are truly creatures of another world.